A documentary reveals the exploitation of Nepalese migrant workers in Qatar, who live in dire conditions, are denied their salaries, and have their passports confiscated by the companies they work for.The investigative documentary by reporter Benjamin Best, titled “WDR Sport Inside: Trapped in Qatar,” was broadcast on German television channel WDR on June 5.In the documentary, migrant workers report not getting paid by the companies they work for, living in miserable accommodation, ...

Qatari banks face growing pressure from high exposure to the country’s sluggish real estate market, hit by oversupply tied to preparations for its 2022 World Cup, ratings agency Fitch said. The tiny but wealthy Gulf state has seen its rental prices slide by 20 percent over the past three years. Analysts expect these prices to fall further as a wave of projects tied to the tournament come online over the next three years. Qatar has had the added challenge of a ...

FIFA will go ahead with a new 24-team Club World Cup starting in 2021, its President Gianni Infantino said on Friday, setting the world soccer governing body in conflict with Europe’s top clubs. Infantino, speaking at a news conference, said FIFA had made the decision at its council meeting on Friday. The competition, however, immediately faced a boycott from Europe’s leading clubs, which include the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester United. The European Club Association (ECA), ...

Soccer’s world governing body FIFA and Qatar’s World Cup organizers concede there are challenges and obstacles to expanding the 2022 tournament from 32 to 48 teams, but neither is willing to take the idea off the agenda just yet. Friday’s meeting of FIFA’s ruling council decided to “explore this possibility further and analyze if a joint expansion proposal that meets all the necessary requirements can be submitted to the FIFA Council and the FIFA Congress in ...

A FIFA feasibility study concluded the 2022 World Cup can expand to 48 teams by using at least one of Qatar’s neighbors as an additional host, and found there is a low legal risk to changing the format and an additional $400 million in revenue could be generated. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the 81-page report on Monday that assesses the political, logistical and legal issues surrounding adding 16 teams - a significant change to the format more than eight years after Qatar won ...

Most football associations in the world back increasing the size of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to 48 teams from 32, with some matches to be played in neighboring countries, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Thursday. Infantino told a news conference the Qataris were open to the larger format. FIFA would make a decision no later than June, once a feasibility study is over, he said. FIFA voted in 2017 to increase the size of the tournament to 48 teams starting from 2026 but, since then, ...

A tour to World Cup 2022 host Qatar by the Nordic football associations has forced players to confront both their consciences and their career ambitions, and it is turning out to be a tough choice. While many players from Sweden, Iceland and Finland jumped at the chance to represent their countries, Finland striker Riku Riski boycotted the trip due to ethical concerns, jeopardizing his international ambitions. The question of how best to protest against the human rights abuses that Qatar is ...

An Amnesty International report on Wednesday exposed how an engineering company involved in building 2022 FIFA World Cup stadium in Qatar did not pay its workers, and exploited many of them. The company, Mercury MENA, “failed to pay its workers thousands of dollars in wages and work benefits, leaving them stranded and penniless,” according to the report. The organization is calling on the Qatari government to ensure that former employees of Mercury MENA receive the money they earned, ...

Sheikh Ahmed al-Yousef, head of Kuwait’s Football Association, said that Kuwait cannot facilitate the conditions of participating in hosting some of the World Cup matches.Yousef told Kuwait’s al-Rai newspaper that it is hard to accommodate FIFA’s main conditions in Kuwait, the biggest of which is allowing all nationalities to enter the country with a visa upon arrival, including Israel.He added: “Even if we selectively picked the teams playing in Kuwait, we cannot prevent ...

A majority of football federations support increasing the number of teams playing at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar from 32 to 48, Fifa president Gianni Infantino said in Doha on Thursday. Speaking at a press conference after a three-day Fifa summit, which was attended by more than 70 federations, he revealed that the plan enjoyed widespread backing from different associations. "We will see," Infantino said. "So far, of course the majority is in favor because 16 more teams can ...